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STATEMENT OF
CHAIRMAN MICHAEL K. POWELL
Re: Review of the Emergency Alert System
For over a half century, the United States has had in
place a national warning system utilizing, in part, our
Nation's broadcast outlets. From the CONELRAD, established
in 1951 by President Truman during the Korean War to its
replacement, the Emergency Broadcast System, established in
1963 by President Kennedy to the modern day Emergency Alert
System (EAS), our government has sought to employ our
country's media outlets as a mechanism for warning the
American public of an emergency.
A lot has changed since 1951. As the primary role of
EAS remains a national public warning system, increasingly
state and local jurisdictions have used its capabilities to
notify their citizens of local emergencies, including
natural weather disasters and in saving the lives of many
abducted children through the Amber Alert. In addition, EAS
has grown from its predecessor's birth on AM radio to FM
radio, broadcast television and wireline and wireless cable
systems. Of course, the threats to our homeland have also
changed dramatically over the last fifty years. As the
world around us has changed, however, the import of the EAS
as a tool for reaching our citizenry during time of need
remains high.
We are proud to adopt this Notice today, as a result,
in part, of the recommendations of the Media Security and
Reliability Council and the Partnership for Public Warning
and in coordination with our partners at the Department of
Homeland Security and its component, FEMA and the Department
of Commerce and its component, the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service.
This proceeding will provide one of many vehicles by
which we collectively explore the most effective mechanism
for warning the American public of an emergency and the role
of EAS as we move further into our digital future. I
commend my colleagues here at the Commission and our
partners at DHS, FEMA, DoC and NOAA for their dedication to
making our homeland a safer place for our citizens.